Hearing Aids

All hearing aids are made to carry out one function, which is to improve the hearing of the sufferer.

There are distinct differences between Analogue and Digital hearing aids in the way that they process the sound it receives, amplified and sends to your ears.  In the case of Analogue it is a very simple process.  The sound is picked up by a tiny microphone, converting it into electrical signals which are then amplified before passing to a small loud speaker which converts the electrical impulses back into a much increased sound, which is then impacted on the ear drum.  Digital Aids have the same three stages except that the amplifying part is carried out digitally. This means that the electrical pulses received from the microphone are converted into data `bits` by a very small computer chip. It is possible to change individual `bits` by amplifying them or reducing them.  This has the great advantage in that the Digital hearing Aid can be set up to compensate exactly a sufferer’s individual hearing loss.

Programming hearing aids is also vastly different between Analogue and Digital Hearing Aids.  Some of the latest Analogue Hearing Aids can be programmed to make sounds louder or quieter, but on a much more limited scale to the Digital Hearing Aid.  This can be programmed like any computer and therefore it will be set up to compensate for any hearing loss over a wide range of frequencies. The Digital Aid can be tuned to eliminate background noises, thus allowing speech to be made clearer when talking in a crowded room.  Also built into the Digital Aid are circuits to overcome feedback, which is a high pitched whistle. Protection against very loud noises is also often included.

Some hearing loss sufferers still prefer Analogue Hearing Aids as can be seen on various message boards.. The main reasons given is that the Analogue gives a much more natural sound as it amplifies all sounds equally including background voices which we all live within our day to day lives.

The main advantage of the Analogue Aid over the Digital Aid is that it is much cheaper, therefore there will always be a place for it for those who cannot afford the expensive Digital Aids but still want improved hearing.

To find out more about the difference between Analogue and Digital Hearing Aids

check out http://www.aids2hearing.co.uk

What does the “hearing aid” type earpiece in musicians ears nowadays do, pipe-in lyrics or music, in stereo?

Saw Darius Rucker on Oprah yesterday. Noticed hearing aid type devices in his ears. I’ve seen these devices in the ears of musicians used more and more these days. What are they for? Can he hear himself? I assume it’s in stereo or mono-aural?

Answer
i can only assume it gives them the beat of the song prerecorded into their ear so they do the right times and that, it also acts as something to keep them from being tone deaf, put your finger in your ear and sing and you will hear a difference then not having it in.